Letter from the Chairperson
Dear Delegates
I am Ishaan Nyati and will be serving as the chairperson of the UNGA-4 Special Political and Decolonization Committee for the third iteration of the Shishukunj MUN.
I am an 11th grader and wish to study law for my further course of education. I think of myself to be an easy-going introvert. I contemplate and pen down my thoughts-however, I rarely publish them. I am a tech geek and an audiophile. I have been MUNning for a long time now, yet there is a lot to learn.
Delegates must understand the need to solve the issues the SPECPOL will handle this year. The agenda on drones is based on a global policy and so even if they don’t stop an ongoing war, they do prevent more instances of such conflicts from happening again. Peacekeeping operations are filled with cases of assaults on civilians, which is hampering the objective of these operations. These operations are debated upon by all committees in the UNO and they are the responsibility of the SPECPOL. With all perspectives in mind, I hope the delegates will be prepared to take on the world where small ideas can lead to global benefit or destruction.
For me, a true MUNner is one who has a clear idea of what the problem is, and how it has to be tackled. A delegate must always attend to his/her stance on the agenda and stay firm on it. In cases where personal ethics conflict with one’s stance, one must always abide what the country stands by, as compared to chicken out to what one feels right. Summing it up, a real MUNner is one who feels at home in someone else’s shoes.
Queries will be resolved at specpol@shishukunjmun.com. Meet you at the conference!
Thank you!
Ishaan Nyati
Chairperson
GA-4 SPECPOL
Organ Description
The Special Political and Decolonization Committee (SPECPOL) is the Fourth Committee of the General Assembly and is the newest standing committee of the GA. It deals with a variety of subjects related to Decolonization, Palestinian refugees and human rights, peace keeping and mine action, outer space, public information, atomic radiation and University for Peace. It not only covers issues of decolonization but also any other political issues not directly dealt with by the mandates of any other UN General Assembly Committee.
The sole purpose of its creation was to advise DISEC when it faced international and security issues after World War II. It was given the task to oversee the creation of Jewish And Arab States out of Palestine.
SPECPOL is responsible for recommending courses of action to the UN Security Council, Specialized Agencies, governments of member nations, international organizations and other non-governmental groups. It is important to note that SPECPOL may not take any military action. Instead, the committee functions only as a forum in which members may engage in conversation, where presentations are made, and where policymaking occurs.
Agenda One: The Legality of Drones in Armed Conflict
As artificial technology development advances, drones have become the go to solution for most purposes where human interference is not required or, at times, harmful, like that of a battlefield. Drones have been embraced by developed countries as a means to provide security and armed protection at many instances. The warzone in Syria is a ripe example, where Russian drones are poised to make advancement in order to remove the Islamic State from the region. However, as time has advanced, dependence on unmanned missions has proved to involve several mishaps, and even has led to killing of innocent civilians. The decision making of artificial intelligence has always been under scrutiny and in such dynamic situations, as in the above example of Syria, has also proven to have broken down. Another question to the issue is whether dependence on a piece of technology for establishment of peace is a feasible option as technology has always made us completely bound by it, and slight malfunction has caused huge losses. Due to their high usability and better stealth dues to being smaller, countries feel threatened at having to combat developed countries using drones for military missions. Thus, a global policy on the usage of drones and regulations to be laid down on its use is a must for the times of today.
Agenda Two: Reforms in UN Peace Keeping Operations
Traditionally, peacekeeping operations have been undertaken to hold onto peace. The operations dealt with cases where application of force had not been required. However, since the ending of the Cold War, peacekeeping operations have become a means to use force and achieve global peace and world order. Due to increase in the use of force by the UNPKF, the UNO faces questions from all over the world over the derailing of the UNPKO from their objective.
Increase in the deployment of troops to protect the interests of the UN has been characterized by the increase in number of cases of mishaps involving troops in deployed operations. Assaults on civilians to get privileges are not unheard of. Sexual assaults by peacekeeping troops have become a grave issue which not only causes defamation of the UNPKF but have also reduced chances of countries accepting these forces into their territories.
The root of the issue is the unanimity of individual troops, which makes it difficult to hold provider countries accountable for the actions of the troops. The decision making of cases of wrongdoings by peacekeeping troops is also a very big question in the issue. It is now time to take up an issue so important. The significance of the decision not only lies in how it would enhance the functioning of UNPKO but also provide a greater incentive for countries to agree to UN intervention in the countries.